Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1489 in DVD
• Released on: 2005-09-19
• Rating: Suitable for 15 years and over
• Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
• Formats: Anamorphic, PAL
• Original language: German
• Subtitled in: English
• Number of discs: 2
• Running time: 149 minutes

Amazon.co.uk Review
The riveting subject of Downfall is nothing less than the disintegration of Adolph Hitler in mind, body, and soul. A 2005 Academy Award nominee for best foreign language film, this German historical drama stars Bruno Ganz as Hitler, whose psychic meltdown is depicted in sobering detail, suggesting a fallen, pathetic dictator on the verge on insanity, resorting to suicide (along with Eva Braun and Joseph and Magda Goebbels) as his Nazi empire burns amidst chaos in mid-1945. While staging most of the film in the claustrophobic bunker where Hitler spent his final days, director Oliver Hirschbiegel dares to show the gentler human side of der Fuehrer, as opposed to the pure embodiment of evil so familiar from many other Nazi-era dramas. This balanced portrayal does not inspire sympathy, however: We simply see the complexity of Hitler's character in the greater context of his inevitable downfall, and a more realistic (and therefore more horrifying) biographical portrait of madness on both epic and intimate scales. By ending with a chilling clip from the 2002 documentary Blind Spot: Hitler's Secretary, this unforgettable film gains another dimension of sobering authenticity. --Jeff Shannon, Amazon.com

Synopsis
Charting the final days of World War II in Nazi Germany, DOWNFALL shows what went on in the bunker where Hitler (Bruno Ganz), his secretary (Alexandra Maria Lara), and a few close colleagues waited for their inevitable demise.

Customer Reviews

Der Untergang / The Downfall
The director, Bernd Eichinger, researched for over 20 years for this movie and it is based on the latest findings regarding incidents and characters involved. Historians both praised and severely questioned the approach since the accomplished authenticity can be misleading. For instance the last interlocution between Albert Speer and Adolf Hitler is based on a belated report by Speer only. But then the interaction between the people in the bunker is what gives them life and allows the audience a perspective that could not be achieved by a documentary. In any case, there is no purely fictitious scene to be found in this film, every single dialogue and action is based on the written record of a witness.
The bunker scenes were shot in a studio in Munich, the outside scenes in St. Petersburg. There is a lot of material on the two bonus DVDs about both. The reason why they chose St. Petersburg was because a few streets there actually look like Berlin during the last days of war. Embarrassing as it was for the authorities, they needed the money. This also allowed the film makers to cast Russians as extras who appear very Aryan with their blue eyes and blonde hair (e.g. the fanatic girl who is fighting in the streets), which is quite ironic. Also I was very touched when I learned that this movie was a German-Russian co-production.
Ulrich Matthes, who plays Joseph Goebbels, says during his interview (also on the bonus DVDs) that he had had a terrible conflict getting into Goebbels' mind because a method actor has actually to like the persona they are taking on. So he accepted an opposite role in the movie "Der neunte Tag" where he personifies a priest who is tortured by a Nazi in the concentration camp of Dachau.

Since I did not watch the English DVD but only the German I cannot comment on the quality of subtitles. But the title "The Downfall" appears to be quite well chosen: I visualize something falling down from very high above and shattering on the ground [of reality]. "Der Untergang" (going under) has a similar meaning but would be used for a translation of "The sinking of the Titanic" or "The destruction of Pompeii" - something is dead & buried.

Other films on the Third Reich that I found extremely impressive are:
Schindler's List by Spielberg; The Pianist by Polanski; and Conspiracy - a BBC/HBO production.

Powerful depiction of the end days in the bunker
A very powerful movie showing the end days of Nazi Germany. It is well acted and shows the different types of people around Hitler apart from Hitler himself. One gets a real sense of what it must have been like in the bunker in the dying days of the war, as it became clearer and clearer for the characters portrayed that the Nazis had lost the war. Some of characters were clearly pathological deviants without question. Others were true believers and followers, who allowed evil to happen as they so much wanted to believe the illusion they were fed, while ignoring the reality and the brutality that was all too obvious for those with eyes to see.

Lessons to be learnt in today's world, where a new rise of fascism is evident. Time to watch out and pay attention to what is really happened and done and not just to what the leaders say.

Best Film Ever
This is one of the best films I have ever seen, yes it is in German but this is because it was all written, produced and filmed in Germany. It is great in the fact that it is one of the first films about the war and Hitler in general to come out of Germany and shows that the people of Germany are now willing to give their side and views about the Third Reich. The subtitles are no problem even for anyone who doesn't like subtitled films, even my daughter at the age of 14 at the time loved it and watched it twice. The fact that it is in German means that the film is more realistic and Hitler sounds more authentic than he would have been with an English accent.
Most of this film was written from stories from Hitler's personnel secretary who lived with him in the bunker, so the accuracy is very real.
This movie is a must for anyone who is interested in the last days of the war and it will leave you with a feeling that you know Hitler that little bit better than before.